When people are looking for somewhere to stay on a weekend away or maybe an overnight business trip, there is often a myriad of local options for them to choose from. So, how do you get your hotel to stand out above the rest and encourage people to click “Book now”?
The simple solution is to be the best at what you do and make everyone know that.
Understanding your guest
There are multiple systems that every hotel should have in place to help them to understand their guests and visitors.
A central reservation system will help you to understand the type of guest you will be hosting, whether that be a family, a couple or a lone traveller, and what services they will be using.
A customer relationship management tool will further assist you in understanding the context behind a guest’s stay and the reason why they chose your hotel. Are they in the area for business, leisure or just passing through on the way to their final destination? Did they hear about you online, from a friend or did they see your brochure in a local tourist destination?
Having these rooted into your business will support your team to customise each guest’s stay and optimise your services to their needs.
Tidy up – the first impression
It can’t be emphasised enough just how important it is to make sure that the first impression your guests have of your hotel is a good one.
This extends much further than just a well-decorated reception and a clean room. The grounds of your hotel, whether that be a grand front entrance or just a public pavement speak volumes to your guests when they arrive.
Litter, dog waste, leaves and general dirt around your front entrance may put off passers-by from even considering staying with you or recommending you to friends and family. Additionally, a poor first impression leaves a sour taste in your guest’s mouth and may cause them to scrutinise the rest of their stay with an even keener eye.
Personalisation
There are a few ways you can exceed your guest’s expectations, but personalisation is definitely one of the most effective.
Once you’ve understood who your guests are and why they are staying with you, you can use this to your advantage and tailor your hospitality.
If someone is celebrating a milestone birthday whilst staying with you, adding a few touches to their room like balloons and some sweet treats will be a gesture that will create a lasting memory for your guest.
Similarly, if a family with young children is staying for the weekend, providing some sanitised toys or offering to bring them a highchair/crib up to their room is a service that will be appreciated by any parent travelling with a baby.
Offering as much personalisation as possible, (even just using their name when being greeted at reception) will give the guest the impression that you really care about them as an individual and build rapport.
Follow up communication
Offering a fantastic guest experience doesn’t just start when your guest checks in or end when your guest checks out.
It’s important to reach out post-booking to ask if there are any special requirements you can organise before they arrive. If they do provide you with some specifications for their stay it’s incredibly important that you do follow through with their request unless you want to be accused of not listening to your guests. This doesn’t leave a great first impression.
After checking out, guest feedback is the most valuable tool you can acquire for hearing about your guest’s experience with you. Some people are more forward and are happy to bring a complaint to your attention straight away. Others are less likely to be as honest in person and prefer to share their feelings once they have returned home.
A follow-up email encouraging your guests to express their thoughts on their stay with you is a great way to pick up and make up for any concerns or bad experiences they might have had before a guest decides to share the negatives online for potential new guests to see.
Resolving the problem
A sure-fire way to ensure you have the absolute best customer service in your area is to fix problems when they arise and put procedures in place to stop them from happening again.
Do this every time and soon enough you’ll have the “do better” culture ingrained in your business and colleagues.
Sweeping problems under the rug or providing a “quick fix” is only going to cause the issue to arise again further down the line and create a series of poor lasting impressions on your guests.
In order to have the best customer service reputation, your team need to always strive to do the absolute most for your guests and work together to resolve issues quickly and effectively.
The best way to do this is with a task management tool like Resolut!on.
Resolut!on allows you to log positive and negative guest feedback instantly whilst also gathering post-stay feedback from your guests.
The reporting dashboard also allows you to drill down into which specific areas are performing well within your hotel (you can filter this by department), and which need extra attention.
If you’re interested in finding out how Resolut!on can help your hotel have the best reputation for customer service in 2022, enquire today!
Resources: https://www.amadeus-hospitality.com/insight/improve-hotel-guest-satisfaction-retention/